Barron v. Snapp

• Decision Date: 26 February 1991
• Docket Number: No. 90-0642,90-0642
• Citation: 468 N.W.2d 841
• Parties: Carol D. BARRON, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Gene H. SNAPP, Jr., Individually, as Executor of the Estate of Gene Harold Snapp, Deceased, and as Co-Trustee of the Gene Harold Snapp Trust Agreement, Davenport Bank and Trust Company, as Co-Trustee of the Gene Harold Snapp Trust Agreement, Defendants-Appellants, and Elaine E. Snapp, Defendant, and Jane L. Fleck; Dale F. Snapp; and all of the unknown Claimants of the Estate of Gene Harold Snapp, Deceased, and the Gene Harold Snapp, Trust, Defendants-Appellants.
• Court: Iowa Court of Appeals

Page 841

468 N.W.2d 841

Carol D. BARRON, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Gene H. SNAPP, Jr., Individually, as Executor of the Estate of Gene Harold Snapp, Deceased, and as Co-Trustee of the Gene Harold Snapp Trust Agreement, Davenport Bank and Trust Company, as Co-Trustee of the Gene Harold Snapp Trust Agreement, Defendants-Appellants and Elaine E. Snapp, Defendant, and Jane L. Fleck; Dale F. Snapp; and all of the unknown Claimants of the Estate of Gene Harold Snapp, Deceased, and the Gene Harold Snapp, Trust, Defendants-Appellants.

No. 90-0642.

Court of Appeals of Iowa.

Feb. 26, 1991.

John A. Templer, Jr. of Shearer, Templer & Pingel, P.C., West Des Moines, for defendants-appellants.

Robert N. Downer and Timothy J. Krumm of Meardon, Sueppel, Downer & Hayes, Iowa City, for plaintiff-appellee.

Heard by OXBERGER, C.J., and SCHLEGEL and SACKETT, JJ.

OXBERGER, Chief Judge.

The facts giving rise to this appeal stem from the various family trees left by Gene Harold Snapp, Sr., following his four marriages. Gene, Jr. is Gene, Sr.'s son from his third marriage. That marriage ended by dissolution and Gene, Sr., obtained custody of Gene, Jr. pursuant to the dissolution decree. Jane L. Fleck, with whom Gene, Jr. was raised, is the daughter of Gene, Sr.'s fourth wife, Elaine E. Snapp. Gene, Sr. legally adopted Jane. Carol D. Barron is Gene Snapp, Sr.'s daughter from his second marriage, which only lasted a short period of time. Carol was born in Oklahoma in 1948 shortly before Gene, Sr. and her mother divorced. Pursuant to the dissolution decree, Gene, Sr. paid child support for Carol for a few years after the dissolution. Carol's mother remarried when Carol was six. When Gene, Sr. learned of the marriage he stopped making child support payments. Although Carol used the last name of her mother's second husband, Byrle Dunn, he never adopted her.

Gene, Sr. died on May 31, 1981, leaving a significant estate. Gene, Sr.'s 1979 will which was admitted to probate contained a pour over provision whereby the bulk of Gene, Sr.'s estate passed to a trust created in 1975. Gene, Jr. who is a certified public accountant and lawyer, drafted Gene, Sr.'s 1975 Trust Agreement. He drafted the agreement using standard forms obtained from the accounting firm where he worked in 1975. These standard forms did not direct defining the term "child" by using specific names. Gene, Jr. and the Davenport Bank and Trust Company serve as co-trustees of the Trust.

Gene, Jr. maintains he did not know of Carol's existence at the time he drafted the Trust Agreement. He also testified that at the time he drafted the Trust Agreement Gene, Sr.'s will named only Gene, Jr. and Jane as his "beloved children." Gene, Sr.'s 1979 will did not name any of his children, other than naming Gene, Jr. as executor, and added a provision giving some stock in one of his business enterprises to Dale Snapp, his brother. Gene, Jr. testified he drafted the Trust Agreement to take advantage of changing tax laws and he based calculations on distributions to two children. The Trust Agreement divides the estate into two parts: "A" and "B". Part "A" defines the marital deduction trust fund under which Elaine Snapp is the beneficiary. Part "B" defines the nonmarital trust fund. Its income and principal are to be made available at the co-trustees' discretion to Elaine and Gene, Sr.'s children.

We review the interpretation of the Trust Agreement de novo. In re Estate of Nagl, 408 N.W.2d 768, 771 (Iowa App.1987). We give weight to the findings of fact made by the trial court, but are not bound by them. Iowa R.App.P. 14(f)(7).

The general rules of construction apply when interpreting wills and trusts. In re Work Family Trust, 260 Iowa 898, 901, 151 N.W.2d 490, 492 (1967). We resort to technical rules or canons of construction only if the language of a trust is ambiguous or if the settlor's intent is for any reason uncertain. See Estate of Christensen, 461 N.W.2d 469, 470 (Iowa App.1990) (authorities omitted). Where we find the terms of a trust unambiguous, we are precluded from interpreting those terms. In re Estate of Kiel, 357 N.W.2d 628, 630 (Iowa 1984).

The disputed provision of the 1975 Trust Agreement states:

Upon the death of the Settlor's wife, or her written renunciation of all interest in Trust Fund B, the Trustees shall divide the balance remaining of Trust Fund B into equal separate shares of such number so that one such share shall be then distributed to each then surviving child of the Settlor and one such share shall be distributed, per stirpes, to the descendants of each then deceased child of the Settlor.

The appellants do not dispute Carol is the natural child of Gene, Sr., and was never adopted by Byrle Dunn. The appellants argue that in the circumstances of this case the term "child" is ambiguous and the circumstances surrounding the creation of the Trust Agreement...